This is such a dynamic read: an incredible blend of horror, humor, and heart. This is camp at its best, unearthing truth with a nod, a wink, and a shrug. Abandoned at a home for unwed mothers, pregnant in Florida in the summer, Neva is rechristened Fern since all the girls are renamed as flowers to enable them to shrug off their disgrace when their confinement is complete. A Librarian in league with the devil hands Fern a book that will change her summer and her destiny, as well as all of those who come into its orbit. With haunting details, complex characters, and a non-stop plot, Hendrix takes an unswerving look at parallels between power, bodily autonomy, and the bonds of friendship in the 1970s vs. today. I have read several other Hendrix books, and while I enjoyed them all, I felt that something was off just a bit in each one – plot, characters, or pacing. In Witchcraft for Wayward Girls, Hendrix has delivered a book that seems so perfectly wrought that one might question how much was paid in blood.

I love a new Grady Hendrix novel, the read will always be fast and exhilarating. Witchcraft for Wayward Girls was no exception. Many of the hallmarks of what I love about Hendrix's novels are present: period setting (1970's Florida), girls struggling under the weight of the patriarchy (unwed, pregnant teens) and a spooky, supernatural element (Witches!). This novel was not as scary as his previous titles nor did it contain moments of pure terror as I've come to expect, nonetheless I tore through it and enjoyed the ride.

Very few male writers treat their female characters with the nuance and empathy of Grady Hendrix. Every member of this little floral coven embodied women I know and love, and I felt them. Hendrix truly understands the visceral horrors that can come with life as a woman.

Overall it wasn't a bad book but it is one of my least favorite books from Grady Hendrix. He is my favorite author though so I definitely still recommend checking it out! I wish there had been more witchcraft. I wish that if we were going with witchcraft being evil it had been more tied to the Devil than actual goddesses and practices (as a pagan the evil witch trope is a lot easier to read if its all based in Christian views). I also wish that for a book dealing so much with sexism and the patriarchy that we had had a lot more feminine rage. Still an enjoyable read but not the best book Hendrix has put out.

Grady Hendrix is such a unique voice in this space and I love his execution of these very original ideas.
Thank you to NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix

In the summer of 1970, unwed mothers are shunned. They are lead to believe they should be ashamed, and forced to hide from society until their “problem” is taken care of.
Main character Neva is one of those girls - she’s just 15 when she finds out she is pregnant, and forced by her family to move into the secretive Wellwood Home until her baby arrives and can be given to a new family.
At Wellwood Home, Neva meets other girls like her. They are bonded by their shared experience and oppression they face.
When a mysterious librarian that delivers books to the girls gives Neva a book about Witchcraft, it shifts the power into the hands of the girls. But they’ll soon learn that too much power can be dangerous, and gifts often come at a price.
—
I already miss this book. I wish it lasted forever.
This reading experience was so immersive and had me so invested in each and every character. It’s on the longer side but you truly get lost in it.
On top of the unique plot and characters, the book tackles deep and important topics, ultimately telling a heart-wrenching story about the power that women hold and how society is afraid of that power - leading to oppression.
The story is brutal at times - crucial to the storytelling. There are some horror elements and a few scary parts, but I would describe this as more slow burn, psychological horror/fiction and the most graphic elements are scenes around childbirth.
I applaud the way that Grady Hendrix told the story of these powerful girls.

Read if you like:
- Women empowerment
- Sisterhood
- Witches
- Revenge plots
- The Handmaid’s Tale

I am very grateful to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an ARC of this title. The opinions in this review are my own.

This was my first Grady Hendrix novel, and I was sucked in right away! Hendrix has an experienced and gripping writing style that keeps the plot driving forward but with a great flair for prose at the right moments. I was skeptical going in with a male author writing a book about a bunch of pregnant teenage girls, but he definitely pulled it off. I felt that all the characters were distinct, consistent, and believable as teenagers.

The story also took an unexpected turn regarding the witchcraft, but I really enjoyed it. Also, as someone who personally squirms at the thought of pregnancy and childbirth, several scenes in this book shook me to my core and made for pretty effective horror on both physical and emotional levels.

The ending was bittersweet and I thought it was worthy conclusion to the whole story. I would love a follow-up with Holly, but the tidbit we got at the end with her influence was satisfying on its own.

My only ‘complaint’ is that there is a lava lamp mentioned over and over in the plot and it is specifically red - would’ve liked to see that accurately reflected on the cover, but the cover is already stunning, that’s just me nitpicking!

Can’t wait to read more titles by this author, I think I’m officially a Grady Hendrix fan!

I didn’t read Grady’s last book (Haunted House); it just didn’t sound like my cuppa. However, when I saw he was putting out a witchcraft story, I was READY. Now, reader beware, this story is a *slow burn*. He spends most of the first half of the book doing character building, and the actual magic isn’t introduced until well into that. This isn’t a horror book that jumps out and scares your pants off. This is a thoughtfully calculated story that has something bigger to say, and he uses witchcraft as a means to achieve it. The real horror lies in the powerlessness of the young women, and the monsters don’t wear pointy hats, but instead doctor and nurse uniforms.

Some scenes in the later half of the book ramps up the tension (it reminded me of the attic scene from “Southern Book Club”), and there are parts where you’re biting your nails waiting for the pin to drop. I also think Grady does a really superb job at animating the fear of childbirth in these young women, while also highlighting the blasé attitudes of the people in power when it comes to their concerns and emotions. The birth scenes really were the most horrific in the book, and that is coming from someone who has never gone through those experiences.

The biggest pro of this book is the character work. There are a lot of characters, and he does a good job of creating a spectrum of evilness from those in charge. As far as the girls themselves, you may not go too deeply into all of their backstories, but you’re rooting for each and every one of them. My favorite character in the book is Hagar; her wisdom and curmudgeonly guidance is some the best character work within the book. I like how Hendrix blends stereotypical ideas of witchcraft with those of a different culture more tied to the land.

As far as my critiques, my biggest problem is with the climax of the story. Obviously, I’m not going into any detail pre-release, but I just feel that with all of the buildup, the conflict resolves too quickly to be satisfying, especially considering the means with which it does so. I think others will have some frustration with just how little supernatural/ witchcraft has to do with the story. It really is a background element, so if you wanted to read this just for scary scenes and spells, you should re-adjust expectations.

The ending/ epilogue chapter was beautiful. It’s going to wrench at your heart and bring some tears. After spending so much time with the girls, I’m happy to have gotten a glimpse of how things turned out for them. I really enjoyed this book even though it wasn’t necessarily the story I might’ve expected. It's a beautifully written, timely story that I think deserves a lot of recognition.

If you loved any of Grady Hendrix’s other books then you will love this one as well! It didn’t disappoint!🙌🏽 and it’s definitely perfect for spooky season!
Thank you NetGalley for this gifted e-arc copy

I was genuinely blown away by how powerful this book was. It smashed my heart into a million pieces every chapter. The sad part is that this book isn’t really *horror* themed in the traditional way with spooky scaries hiding in closets and guts and gore, it comes from the horrific reality women had to face before we had the right to choose. I’m incredibly impressed with the fact that a man was able to convey the tragedy, sorrow, pain, and power in these women’s stories in such a painfully honest way.

I didn’t know where it was going for the longest time but when it all finally clicked into place, I sobbed my way through the last chapter and epilogue. This was easily a 6 star read for me and has earned Mr. Hendrix a spot in my favorite authors list.

Man, I was really hoping to love this book. Unfortunately, the plot doesn't pick up until about 25% in, but even then the witchcraft being done is so spread out and sparse that you don't really have time to get excited about when it's performed. S0me of the scenes are creepy and on brand for Grady Hendrix, but the lead up just isn't worth it. The scariest thing about this book was the impending doom of labor and pregnancy as a whole. I felt very bored and on the verger of DNF-ing throughout the entire thing, and I actually had to skim the pages starting at 70% to the finish line because I was just SO disinterested in the plot. I hate having to write a negative review about this, but honestly wouldn't recommend to anyone (even readers into witch stories). Giving this a two for the fact that I liked a couple of the characters.

Just finished. I pretty much love everything about this book. It was suspenseful, it was emotional and it had witches and librarians!

This is a quick-moving story that had me hooked from the beginning right through to the end. It takes place in 1970, so it is an interesting cultural point where unmarried teens were often sent away to have their babies in secret and then put them up for adoption but new attitudes to sexual liberation and equality are springing up.

The depictions of medical practices that were in place at that time are not greatly exaggerated, unfortunately some of these practices are still common today.

Throughout the book, real-world horror competed with the supernatural and characters had to figure out which was the lesser of two evils.

This is folk-horror at its best.

I will definitely be buying for my library and recommending this one!

Witchcraft for Wayward Girls is not what I expected. I enjoyed reading it. It is not horror. It is historical fiction with witches. And the ending wasn’t as strong as the rest of the book.

First and foremost, this book is about trauma. Physical trauma, emotional trauma, psychic, and sexual trauma…and a society that expects young ladies to remain silent about it.

It is a book describing a society where men sleep soundly in their beds while the young women deal with the consequences of the actions that BOTH willing (or not) participated in, while leaving only ONE to carry the shame, guilt, and scorn.

What I wanted from Witchcraft for Wayward Girls was a book that empowered those young women to destroy that society, to rip those men from their beds and force some kind of reckoning upon them.

I do not feel like I got that book.

What I wanted from Witchcraft for Wayward Girls was a book full of the heart, humor, and horror that has made Grady Hendrix one of my favorite authors.

I do not feel like I got that book either.

What I got was a book that feels, well, heartless. And perhaps it is a reflection of the society in which it takes place and perhaps it is a reflection of the American society that we seem to be flirting with returning. How different is 2024 America from 1970 America? In some ways, not different enough.

I wanted retribution and empowerment. I wanted a coven of bad-ass women to rise up against a patriarchal society and make it tremble in fear. I wanted castration and male tears filling up bathtubs for these witches to bathe in. Instead, there was angst and snide remarks and back-stabbing and girls fighting girls and women fighting women and all the stereotypes of the “fairer sex” while the men enjoy their lives and their power and their privilege.

In other words, Witchcraft for Wayward Girls has left me unsatisfied.

Did I enjoy reading it? Of course, it’s Grady Hendrix. Are there some memorable scenes? Of course.

But it wasn’t…the book I wanted it to be. My fault, perhaps, for having my own vision in mind.

Please read and enjoy!

Neva is a fallen girl. Pregnant, 15, unmarried, her parents ship her off to Wellwood House in Florida- far away from her home, her family and friends. There, she is stripped of her identity, placed in a box with the other girls in the home. Girls just like her. Girls without a voice, girls without options or a say or agency. Their diets and lives are strictly regimented. Have your baby, give it away, return to your old life like nothing happened. That's the motto, that's the inevitable. But what if there was another way? When the local librarian gives Neva (now Fern) a book of magic, suddenly, the girls don't feel quite so hopeless. In it, there's a promise of power, of choice. How far are they willing to go to take back their lives? And what are they willing to sacrifice in order to gain that power?

With a glimpse into the "homes" that girls were sent to have their babies in secret. Through each girl, we get a different tragedy. All of these girls represent a different tragedy in the ways in which girls become pregnant. Left by the boy who they thought they would marry, thrown away to not get in the way of his success, sexual assault/rape, etc. None of these girls bear the full responsibility for their "condition", it does take two after all, and yet we're thrust back into a society where women did take all the responsibility, and blame, shame, etc. Hendrix doesn't shy away from it either. The girls represent different backgrounds, ages, races all put into the same helpless position based on the one thing they share-- pregnancy. As someone who has lived their entire life with Roe in place, this was a stark warning of how easily the world could shift back to this, and how in ways in different areas it already has.

When the girls get access to a magical book, and start to explore witchcraft, they are given an alternative way out. They don't have to be helpless, they don't have to accept the way things are. But that's just trading one prison for another.

I just finished "Witchcraft for Wayward Girls" by Grady Hendrix. I received an eARC through NetGalley.

Neva is a fallen girl. Pregnant, 15, unmarried, her parents ship her off to Wellwood House in Florida- far away from her home, her family and friends. There, she is stripped of her identity, placed in a box with the other girls in the home. Girls just like her. Girls without a voice, girls without options or a say or agency. Their diets and lives are strictly regimented. Have your baby, give it away, return to your old life like nothing happened. That's the motto, that's the inevitable. But what if there was another way? When the local librarian gives Neva (now Fern) a book of magic, suddenly, the girls don't feel quite so hopeless. In it, there's a promise of power, of choice. How far are they willing to go to take back their lives? And what are they willing to sacrifice in order to gain that power?

What a timely novel. Grady Hendrix explores a time right before the passing of Roe v. Wade with a glimpse into the "homes" that girls were sent to to have their babies in secret. Through each girl, we get a different tragedy. All of these girls represent a different tragedy in the ways in which girls become pregnant. Left by the boy who they thought they would marry, thrown away to not get in the way of his success, sexual assault/rape, etc. None of these girls bear the full responsibility for their "condition", it does take two after all, and yet we're thrust back into a society where women did take all the responsibility, and blame, shame, etc. Hendrix doesn't shy away from it either. The girls represent different backgrounds, ages, races all put into the same helpless position based on the one thing they share-- pregnancy. As someone who has lived their entire life with Roe in place, this was a stark warning of how easily the world could shift back to this, and how in ways in different areas it already has.

When the girls get access to a magical book, and start to explore witchcraft, they are given an alternative way out. They don't have to be helpless, they don't have to accept the way things are. But that's just trading one prison for another.

The real horror is how non of these choices leave the women's bodies as their own. Whether is oppression from the state, the witches, or the babies growing inside of them-- before Roe, there was never a choice for a woman's body to be her own. Excellent examination of this. Horrific in it's unflinching look at this issue. Maybe my favorite one of Grady's yet.

This was not at all what I expected, and I really enjoyed it! I've read all of Hendrix's books, and this one is very different from the rest. This was less about supernatural horror and more about the horrors of everyday life, especially as a young woman. There are some supernatural elements to the book, don't get me wrong, but the real horror of the book lies in these girls' trials while going through pregnancy and being forced to give up their babies. Although this is set in 1970, the challenges the girls face are not completely foreign in this day and age. Hendrix is one of the only male authors who I trust to write female characters - he must consult the women in his life heavily when writing his characters. Overall, not scary in the traditional sense, but plenty horrific.

It's incredibly difficult to believe, at times, that this book was written by a man. The (extremely) realistic depictions and descriptions of pregnancy, birth, and the treatment of young pregnant women (girls, really) were so believable that at times I literally thought "This woman gets it.... surely she's had several kids, maybe even prior to 1970".... and then I'd remember what I was actually reading, and whom it was written by. That's a lot of words to say that I appreciated how REAL everything felt. As far as this being a horror book, sure there were some creepy moments, and witches and all that, but the real horror lies within how the pregnant girls were treated, even by people who loved them and swore to "protect" them. Having no say in whether or not you get to keep your child- that's horror. Being fifteen, and going through pregnancy without your family- THAT'S horror. By extension, the real magic is found within each girl- their innate power and strength doesn't come from a book or a spell, but from deep within themselves.
This, like most of Grady Hendrix's books, was extremely hard to put down. I felt so much deep sympathy for Fern-for most of the "flowers", that I just HAD to know what was going to happen to the characters next. Hendrix definitely did his research for this novel, pulling from different religions, mythologies, and astrological texts. Even names had a deeper meaning (Decima, one of the Fates; Parcae, Diana, etc). It would probably serve me well to reread this at a later date to pick up on all the incredible details I might have missed the first time. That last sentence alone speaks volumes for this book, as I rarely, if ever, reread anything. I don't want to give too much more away, but I don't think I could recommend reading this enough. Although I have made a point to read most of Hendrix's books, as I do truly enjoy them, I have to say this is by far my favorite. A must read, for sure.

This is, without a doubt, Hendrix's best work. I am sobbing like a baby as I write this. Absolutely incredible and easily making the short list for my favorite book this year. Hendrix takes everything we love about gory, dark and scary horror and makes it MEAN SOMETHING. My copy is riddled with highlights, some of the strongest sentences and thoughts put to paper in a horror novel. I am SO excited for people to read this.

A home for young women pregnant out of wedlock also dabbles in witchcraft in 1970s Florida.

This is my plea to all authors everywhere: please stop writing 500 page books simply because you can write 500 page books. The overarching storyline: abandoned teen mothers find friendship and support in one another and strength and a voice via witchcraft-was beaten into my skull so many times I started to feel whiplash. This book could have told the story it told in 250 to 300 pages and been far more effective. Also, this novel did not read like Grady Hendrix to me. I felt like I was reading another literary fantasy novel by Kelly Barnhill and had to keep checking the title page to make sure...Going into this I wanted creepy and entertaining and ended up with heartfelt and dull. Definitely a disappointment.